Confirmed Deaths: 22
Total Believed Dead: 29
Total Injured and Dead: 42
Provinces Involved: 5
Average Death per Day: around 1
18 April
Fujian Province
A major fire at the Linkeng Colliery, a privately owned coal mine in Daji Village, Longyan City, killed eleven miners and left one seriously injured. The cause of the fire is still reportedly unknown, and the owner of the mine currently being questioned by the police.
11 April
Henan Province
Twelve miners and technical workers were trapped in a flooded coal mine in Chaohua town of Xinmin City. A mine at the Zhengzhou Coal Industrial Corporation’s Chaohua Coal Mine flooded on 11 Sunday. Rescue workers reportedly heard the trapped workers banging on pipes the following Thursday afternoon. The workers were trapped in the mine for a total of one hundred and nine hours. On 16 Friday, in the morning, all of the trapped miners were freed.
According to the rescue headquarters formed by the Henan Provincial Coal Mine Safety Department, the accident was allegedly caused by a lack of proper inspection of the amount of water in the mined area, and lack of effective evacuation measures.
Following the flood, the Henan Provincial Coal Mine Safety Department reportedly urged all local coal mines to carry out inspections that could identify possible flood dangers.
10 April
Heilongjiang Province
A blast in a coal mine pit in Hada Village of Jidong County has left nine miners dead. It was reported that one miner is still missing, but it is unlikely that he survived the blast. The explosion occurred in the early morning and the cause of the blast is still under investigation.
The blast caused the provincial government to launch a special campaign across the province to shut down remaining coal pits. The effects of this campaign have yet to be monitored.
4 April
Jilin Province
A gas blast at the No. 1 Well of Shuanglong Coal Dressing Co. Ltd. in the Erdaojiang District of Donghua City killed at least one miner and left four others missing. The missing four are now presumed to be dead.
Two workers escaped the accident, the cause of which is reportedly unknown.
Jinan Province
Three miners are missing, and one dead after a flooding at the Kunlun Coal Mine in Zibo City. Twenty three miners had been working underground, and nineteen managed to evacuate before the mine was flooded. There is reportedly little chance of rescue for the remaining three miners, as conditions in the mine are dangerous and have prevented a more substantial rescue effort.
The mine is owned by the Kunlun Township Government. According to reports, the chief engineer of the Zibo Mining Group stated that the accident occurred due to inadequate information about the geological structure of the underground area, and a lack of water probing measures.